Ornamental design structures and method of making the same and components thereof

ABSTRACT

Ornamental grillwork designs, design combinations, railings and columns wherein an elemental design structure used includes press-formed parts secured together at corresponding, contiguous ends. At least one set of ends is constructed and arranged for insertion in a positioning aperture, to accommodate ease of attachment as by welding. Multiple convolutions and intricate designs are possible, both as to individual design pairs and to also as to composite designs wherein respective pair-structures are placed contiguously together. Fabrication, thus, becomes greatly simplified and possible breakage and damage during transit, minimized. Improved methods of fabrication of both elemental designs and composite structures are disclosed.

United States Patent m1 Larson 51 June5, 1973 [54] ORNAMENTAL DESIGN STRUCTURES AND METHOD OF MAKING THE SAME AND COMPONENTS THEREOF [76] lnventor: Ellis DeLoy Larson, 225 East State Road, Pleasant Grove, Utah 84062 [22] Filed: Feb. 18, 1971 [21] Appl. No.: 116,425

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Edwards ..256/22 Primary Examiner-Alfred C. Perham Attorney-M. Ralph Shaffer [57] ABSTRACT Ornamental grillwork designs, design combinations, railings and columns wherein an elemental design structure used includes press-formed parts secured together at corresponding, contiguous ends. At least one set of ends is constructed and arranged for insertion in a positioning aperture, to accommodate ease of attachment as by welding. Multiple convolutions and intricate designs are possible, both as to individual design pairs and to also as to composite designs wherein respective pair-structures are placed contiguously together. Fabrication, thus, becomes greatly simplified and possible breakage and damage during transit, minimized. Improved methods of fabrication of both elemental designs and composite structures are disclosed,

1 Claim, 9 Drawing Figures PATENTEDJUH 5 1975 INVENTOR.

Ellis De Loy Larson His Attorney PATENIEDJUH 5l973 3.738720 SHEET 2 BF 2 INVENTO Ellis DeLoy Larson l9 WI W2 I l I BY His Attorney time reduce cost thereof, avoid breakage of hitherto cast parts, and so forth.

The inventor is aware of numerous approaches taken in the prior art. See the following U.S. Pat. No. 351,436 I-lainsworth; No. 386,124 I-Iainsworth; No. 1,250,184 Johnson; No. 3,339,895 Kusel et. al.; No. 2,909,361 Dotson; and No. 2,655,345 Lindman.

In all prior grillwork structures of which the inventor is aware, great cost is involved in both making and fabricating ornamental designs. A conventional approach is for a manufacturer of elemental designs to cast the parts and then send these to fabricators throughout the country. This has proven very unsatisfactory because of danger of breakage of grillwork-type castings during shipment. Additionally, castings frequently are very rough and are somewhat difficult to weld properly to crossrails or upstanding column poles or posts. Additionally, castings of grillworks or elements thereof is very costly.

The inventor has conceived and has reduced to practice the concept of making elemental grillwork designs from simply strap metal or bars, that is, metal having rectangular or other cross section and sometimes known as, simply, bars." Such bars can be of any cross section i.e.,; of course, however, the inventor has chosen to use bars of rectangular cross section.

It is noted that by use of a press and proper forming dies that opposite halves of an elemental grillwork design can be made with a single press stroke. Such can produce multiple convolutions, curves, and so forth, in

both bar lengths at the same time, i.e., during the same;

press stroke, such that the fabricator of the elemental design, after the pressing function, may simply secure,

as by welding, the contiguous respective points of the respective bars. Thus, it becomes a very inexpensive and straightforward approach in forming grillworks, that is, for example, to make the opposite halves of the grillwork simultaneously formed metal bars that can be formed as by a press. Then, by putting the halves together and welding touching points, there immediately is fabricated a design that can be used in grillwork, railings, columns, and so forth.

A second feature in the invention is that at least one 1 sition, the top and bottom cross-rails, the same preferably taking the form of inverted channels with one channel being punched. Accordingly, after the cross-rails are squared and plumbed, it becomes a simple matter for the ends of the elemental designs to be positioned through the punched apertures and then squared so that the presently lower-most ends can be welded together in place. Subsequently, the remaining ends of the elemental designs are welded at the punched aperture regions of the associated rail. After welding is completed, the structure is inverted so that the previously lower-most rail now becomes the hand rail or upper-most rail of the design.

Such a fabrication technique, and the forming of such elemental design structures with their combinations, has proven highly satisfactory so far as reduction in cost is concerned. Additionally, breakage during transit is eliminated and the fabricators can be supplied elemental designs in a very inexpensive manner.

, The various designs shown in the drawings indicate the versatility of such a strucutal arrangement, indicating the designs are formed not only by the individual member pairs forming a design structure, but also, by adjacent ones of such structure are formed different and new designs.

Accordingly, a principal object of the present invention is to provide new and improved design structures for railings, grillwork, columns, and so forth.

A further object is to provide design structures of a variety of convolutions and fluted possibilities where the same can be extremely easily formed and fabricated.

A further object is to provide a new and improved method for making railings, grillwork, columns, and elemental designs thereof.

An additional object is to provide new and improved elemental design structures which need not be cast.

A further object is to provide design structures which can be secured together as by welding at mutually spaced points, to facilitate fabrication. v

A further object is to provide elemental design structures having at least one and preferably, their opposite ends formed so that single positioning apertures can accommodate positioning of respective ends.

The features of the present invention which are believed to be novel are set forth with particularity in the appended claims.

The present invention, both as to its organization and manner of operation, together with further object and advantages thereof, may best be understood by reference to the following description, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1-4 are front elevations of elemental design structure contemplated as representatives of design structure fabrication in the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a perspective view, partially broken away, indicating the manner by which fabrication of such elemental designs may be made relative to cross-rails.

FIG. 6 is a fragmentary front view of the structure of FIG. 5, illustrating the manner in which elemental design structures are disposed subsequent to their being welded to upper and lower cross-rails.

FIG. 7.is a perspective view of completed grillwork incorporating a multiple number of the elemental design of FIG. 4 in combination with suitable cross-rails.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view of a column incorporating the elemental design structure of FIG. 4.

FIG. 9 is a vertical cross-section, in fragmentary in nature, and is taken along the line 9-9 in FIG. 6.

In FIGS. 1-4 the design structures 10-13 are illustrated. Each of these design structures comprise a member A and a member B, the individual members being specifically designated as Al-A4, and Bl-B4 as illustrated. It is noted that each of the members A, B,

of each design structure are preferably opposite halves and, hence, may be formed simultaneously in a press of standard design and using appropriately configured dies. Thus, the opposite halves A,B, of each design structure may be simultaneously formed so that there need only remain a joining of the two members together. This can be done by welds, as indicated by weld buttons W in FIG. 1 or by other means such as riveting, bands, and so forth. It is highly desirous, however, that the principle of welding be used in securing the opposite halves or members together.

Of importance in all of the designs is that the upper end C and at the lower end D of each design, see FIG. 1, preferably come together. This is for the purpose of ease of assembly. Thus, at the end D of the design shown in FIG. 1, see also FIG. 5, the same may be disposed through a single square or rectangular aperture 14 which is previously punched into bottom rail 15. Bottom rail 15 is preferably a channel that may take any other form such as angle iron, if desired. It is noted that for assembly purposes, the bottom rail and top rail (16) are inverted as to position. This is so that a representative design and, this will apply to other designs such as 11-13, may be urged upwardly through a punched aperture 14 in an askew or angulated position; thereafter, the design 10, can simply be dropped verti; cally downwardly and squared, see FIG. 6, at triangle 17, so that the top end C may be dropped vertically downwardly and welded in place in the manner shown in the left-hand side of FIG. 5.

An ideal structural arrangement for accomodating the implacement of several design structures relative to their cross-rails is illustrated in FIG. 5. Thus, a vertical panel 18 is provided and has upper brackets 19 and lower brackets 20 as indicated. Upper brackets 19 have their horizontal legs 21 disposed in the same plane so as to horizontally support the inverted bottom rail 15 in the manner indicated. Such rail can be pre-punched so that apertures 14 will appear in mutually spaced disposition as shown. Where adjacent design structures are to be welded or otherwise secured together, or permitted simply to touch in a composite design work, then the punched apertures 14 will be mutually spaced apart such that the outer convolutions as at F and G relative to the design in FIG. 1, will exactly touch. This is shown relative to the design structure in FIG. 4 and the composite design made up of such structures as illustrated in FIG. 7. I

In any event, the panel 18 having uper and lower brackets 19 and 20 are disposed to support bottom rail 15 and top rail 16 in a vertical plane. This is preferably accomplished by using positioning blocks 21 and 22 that serve as a jig such that, in fact, the rail 15 and 16 are mutually vertically disposed as indicated in FIG. 9.

In fabrication, it is deemed to deem preferable to align vertically in both directions the bottom and top rails 15, 16, with bottom rail 15 being pre-punched, and then to insert a representative design structure 10 .as shown in FIG. 5 and permit the same to rotationally displace and drop down in the manner shown, from right to left, in FIG. 5. At this point, the structure can be welded to the rails at Wl-W4 as indicated in FIG. 6. This securement will take place only after the lower portion of the design pattern has been spared as by a triangle. Subsequently, mutually spaced points along the top rail 16 can be marked as by chalk so that end C of subsequent design structures implaced between the rails can be accurately positioned relative to the first rail. I

Once the welding or other securement of the design structures of the two rails has been completed and the structure inverted, as shown in the completed rail pattern of FIG. 7, then the same is immediately ready for use. Note that all of the end welds of the individual design structures are hidden by virtue of the channelshaped configurement of rails 15 and 16.. If desired, rail 16 can serve either as a hand rail, or another member, not shown, constituting a hand rail can be secured to the upper surface of rail 16 in FIG. V. All of this is optional with the artisan or builder.

FIG. 8 illustrates that vertical columns may be accommodated by the structure of the present invention. Thus, upstanding rails, poles, or posts 21" and '22 may comprise rectangular or square, cross-sectional tubing with the design structure 13 of FIG. 4 being used at two places and being butt-welded together or otherwise contiguously disposed at 23 in FIG. 8.

Accordingly, columns which can be planar or polygonal can be made in a very short space of time.

FIG. 7 illustrates the versatility of the structure in having successive ones of elemental lines as typified by the representative design structures of FIGS. 1-4, mutually disposed contiguously. This, adjacent ones of the design structures may, themselves, form between themselves unique designs, taking the form of sword points,

shields, semicircles, and so forth. When desired, the contiguous points as at X and Y, see FIG. 7, of adjacent design structures may be welded together after assembly has taken place relative to the individual design structures and their cross-rails.

An essential feature, therefore, in the present invention is in the provision of design structures which can be easily formed and implaced with a minimum of effort. In connection with this feature, it is noted that the ends of each design structure come together so that single punched holes can accommodate the adjacent and contiguous ends of the members making up the representative design structures.

From the above, it is seen that the present methods of fabricating elemental designs and composite structures:

A method of fabricating an elemental design structure for grillwork, railings, columns and the like comprising: providing a pair of bendable metal bars, pressforming said bars into opposite halves of a desired design, and then welding said bars together to form said design; and, a method of fabricating a decorative structure comprising providing a pair of elongate rails having channel-shaped cross-sections, with one of said rails having no plurality of mutually spaced apertures supporting said rails in respective horizontal, verticallyspaced positions, providing a series of press-formed, elemental design structires having opposite ends constructed for insertion in said aperture, positioning said ends, each in turn, of said elemental design structures through said apertures, then positioning the remaining ends of said elemental design structures to said rails, and finally, removing and inverting the so-formed composite design structure for further use.

While particular embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described, it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made without departing from this inven tion in its broader aspects and, therefore, the aim in the appended claims is to cover all such modifications as fall within the true spirit and scope of the invention.

I claim:

1. A method of fabricating a decorative structure comprising: providinga pair of elongate rails having channel-shaped'crossssections, with one of said rails having a plurality of mutually spaced apertures; supporting said rails a predetermined distance apart in respective horizontal, vertically-spaced positions; providing a series'of press-formed, elemental design structures having uniform crosssections and opposite paraldesign structure for further use. 

1. A method of fabricating a decorative structure comprising: providing a pair of elongate rails having channel-shaped crosssections, with one of said rails having a plurality of mutually spaced apertures; supporting said rails a predetermined distance apart in respective horizontal, vertically-spaced positions; providing a series of press-formed, elemental design structures having uniform cross-sections and opposite parallel ends constructed for insertion in said apertures; positioning said ends, each in turn, of said elemental design structures through said apertures; then positioning the remaining ends of said elemental design structures, each in turn, against the lower-most rail in pre-determined positions; then welding said parallEl ends of said elemental design structures to said rails; and finally, removing and inverting the so-formed composite design structure for further use. 